What Marketers Can Learn From Bud Light’s Tumble

This blog was written by Setup’s Business Development + Marketing Associate, Alexis Quarcoo.

It’s time to break down what we could learn from the Bud Light controversy.

At Setup, our goal is to help marketers thrive. A part of that is providing actionable insights and learnings from the industry’s trials and wins to inspire you to be the best marketer possible. In this synopsis, we will cover Bud Light’s latest missteps (with grace) and provide four takeaways on how you can appeal to new audiences without alienating old ones.

What happened?

Bud Light launched a social media partnership with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney to celebrate the anniversary of her transition that included sending her a custom made can with an image of her face printed on the side. The move was met with backlash from some followers who called for a boycott of the product. Celebrities, including country singer Kid Rock, also added fuel to the fire by shooting cases of Bud Light with a rifle. This led to social media outbursts and even more consumers boycotting the brand.

What we learned?

#1 Ask your consumers what they want:

Marketers need to remember that they are working for their audience, not themselves. As marketers, we know the most important thing is understanding the consumer inside and out. Using behavioral observation, social listening, data, and surveys/polls, marketers can better learn a consumer’s psychographics (values, goals, beliefs, and preferences). Before branching into new audience territory, it’s important to understand your current audience, and assess or consult them before you make decisions that may not appeal to them.

It is also important to evaluate your brand’s reputation, role in society, and life stage. In Bud Light’s case, they are a hundred million dollar brand that has been on the market for over 40 years. According to the product life cycle continuum, and confirmed by their former VP of Marketing, Alissa Heinerscheid, Bud Light has been in the decline phase for many years and knew they needed to do something. “This brand is in decline, it's been in a decline for a really long time, and if we do not attract young drinkers to come and drink this brand, there will be no future for Bud Light,” Heinerscheid stated during an interview on the Make Yourself at Home Podcast. 

Although the actions to expand into a new market to expose the brand to other audiences was noble, there may have been a misunderstanding of what the brand meant to the current core audience. Misunderstandings can often make a brand appear tone deaf. 

#2 Understand the new audience:

In an effort to seem more inclusive, brands often venture into performative territory - making choices to appease certain groups when the efforts don’t align with the brand’s values and are not backed up by action. As a marketer, understanding the new audiences that you’re trying to appeal to is crucial. Failure is common when brands try to break into new markets, especially when it comes to diversity and inclusion efforts. Many brands struggle with this  due to not having enough of “said audience” at the table when making big decisions. Therefore, a number of assumptions end up being made.

In order to combat this, having people on your team from different backgrounds who offer a variety of perspectives to help inform decisions is imperative. Pair a range of diverse perspectives with research to understand the audience’s unique needs, wants, and psychographics and you’re golden. But even STILL, things can be missed. That’s why it is important to have the next step.

#3 Internal alignment:

For large brands, there are separate departments that make up an organization, and, because they are operating in their own world, cross-collaborative efforts can get disjointed and goals can get muddled. Marketers, especially when doing something consumer facing, need to make sure that everything is checked meticulously internally before going public. A thorough QA process can prevent oversight for marketing campaigns, but that doesn’t always prevent things from slipping through the cracks. A general rule of thumb should be if the campaign is dealing with anything controversial where a stance is being taken, everyone (including stakeholders) should be informed and, ideally, on board. Communication on messaging needs to be universal from the C-suite to entry level employees because when there is a disconnect internally, there can be a hard time conveying a consistent message if and when there is backlash.

With the Bud Light situation, it seemed like there was a misalignment across the organization. Based on the vague response to the backlash of the campaign by the Bud Light CEO, Brendan Whitworth, it seems like the marketing team may have had ideas on the direction they wanted to push the brand that other internal members may not have known about or fully understood. Which could explain the response when it came to addressing the noise surrounding the campaign.

#4 Stand by your decisions:

When making the decision to run a certain campaign, you have to own the outcome – whether good or bad.

Bud Light made a bold choice and then did not stand by their choice to work with Dylan Mulvaney once the controversy began. Subsequently, not supporting her when she continued to receive hate after “the dust settled” is where they really lost a lot of followers, leading to Modelo Especial replacing them in the top spot for the number one beer. Not only did Bud Light lose the top beer position, but their sales dropped by 23% compared to the previous year.

Bud Light isn’t the first brand to take such drastic missteps when entering a new territory or attempting to show support. This is unfortunately a common move for brands who want to improve their social standings, and, because of Bud Light’s choice to not stand with their original decision to support Dylan, it left a sour taste in the mouths of the LGBTQIA+ community and allies.

Nike Ad | Dream Crazy

Some brands have navigated taking a stand for what they believe in successfully.  Nike is well known for standing up for what they believe in, and not being apologetic about it. Nike is known for standing with activists like Colin Kaepernick, and accepting the backlash from dissenters. This move solidifies the brand’s strength because it allows them to stand firm in their beliefs and gives the consumer the chance to make a decision on what causes they want to support.

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It’s okay to make mistakes. In fact, it is one of the biggest catalysts for growth (as long as you take the steps to learn and improve from them). Understanding who your audience is and honoring them is important when launching any campaign. And, when in doubt, always ask yourself “why” you’re doing something, and if your actions align with your company’s mission and values. Acting in alignment with your team and values can sometimes lead to more popularity or financial success.

But it all comes down to the “why” you’re doing it. If you can’t back up the reason, then your decision may lead to more backlash and isolation. Feel free to break into new audiences, but tread lightly and be aware so that you aren’t ruining your current relationships.